PISCES to Unveil Robotic Rover and Its Uses Friday

A Hilo-based space research center will showcase its latest acquisition Friday before lawmakers in Honolulu.

The Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems will demonstrate its new robotic lunar rover at the Capitol Rotunda.

Preceding that will be a briefing in House Conference Room No. 309 on plans to use the rover to help stimulate the state’s economy and strengthen science and technology education, PISCES said in a statement.

After its trip to the Capitol, the rover will make its official public debut on Saturday at the Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor.

The rover was built by Ontario Drive Gear, a Canadian manufacturer of all-terrain vehicles.

PISCES last year entered into a five-year agreement with NASA under which the agency would provide PISCES with technical support.

Although the exact terms of the agreement have not been released, PISCES officials say it is expected to include technologies required for space exploration beyond low Earth orbit.

In other PISCES news, the state Legislature is scheduled to hold a hearing Thursday on a bill that would appropriate funds for an engineering study of a proposed laser communications ground station in Hawaii.

The assessment would be conducted jointly by PISCES and NASA.